Save Our Ship
by mulzypops
Summary: This takes place post-Starclimber. The world's longest scheduled airship flight by distance from America to Arabia crashes killing the old captain. Matt Cruse becomes the new captain. It's always been Matt's dream to be the captain of an airship. But after an incident over the top of the world, things become too complicated for Matt to grasp. And where's Kate in all this drama?
1. Arabian Nights

**No one's written a fanfiction involving the **_**Airborn **_**trilogy for over a year and a half. And now it's about time that this fact changes. I started getting into the trilogy about 9 years after the first book released and after realizing Airborn had 2 sequels I convinced my mom to buy them for me. I loved it! So I was a bit sad to find out **_**Starclimber**_** was in fact the last one. So I decided to make a fanfic post-**_**Starclimber**_** events. This fanfic is dedicated to Saudia Airlines Flights 41/42, which actually flies the exact same route as the fictional airship **_**Arabian Nights**_**.**

**Except that Saudia Airlines Flights 41/42 are on airplanes, and airplanes don't exist in the **_**Airborn**_** universe, because airships "rule the skies". :)**

**By the way, here are some things you should know if you are new to reading this specific series:**

**First off the stories are all in Matt Cruse's point of view, no switch in the point of view. Second off, the reason airplanes don't exist in the **_**Airborn **_**series is because Kenneth Oppel made the series that way, as if airships were so successful that airplanes never needed to be invented (and that the airships used a made-up gas called hydrium instead of hydrogen, so the **_**Hindenburg**_** didn't explode in this story). Next off, the story takes place in an alternate past. It's like somewhere in between the 1900s and 1950s. I don't know the exact year because Oppel did not confirm it. Last off, the names of places around the world have been changed, some by Kenneth Oppel (who owns the **_**Airborn**_** trilogy and made these changes himself in the actual books) and some by me (who owns nothing and just made these changes for the fun of it).**

**Lionsgate City = Vancouver**

**Atlanticus = Atlantic Ocean**

**Pacificus = Pacific Ocean**

**Arabia = Saudi Arabia**

**New Amsterdam = New York**

**The Top of The World = North Pole**

_**The**_** America**_**s**_** = The continents of North America and South America combined**

**America = the United States**

**The Mideast = A region of countries located in between Europe, Asia, and Africa; referred as the Middle East in real life; this is where Arabia is located**

**Europa = Europe**

**Persia = Iran**

**And others I'll talk about later. And if you are a Gravity Falls fan reading this just because I'm making this fanfic (I write Disney Channel's Gravity Falls fanfictions!), do not confuse Pacific**_**us**_** with Pacific**_**a**_**. Hahaha! Well enough with the blabbering let's start with the first chapter. It's sort of short.**

The _Arabian Nights_ was an airship everyone has been buzzing about. Kenneth Ali, the assistant sailmaker of the _Aurora_ (since my friend Bruce died four years ago), stopped working on the Lunardi line just recently and requested that Otto Lunardi, Bruce's father and owner of fourty airships (including the _Aurora_), build him a ship because he wanted to captain his own ship. Lunardi surprisingly agreed and later said that it was because of Ali's magnificant service to the _Aurora_ and technically the Lunardi fleet in general.

Kenneth Ali lived in Los Angeles, a city down in the west coast of America. He was a half-Arabian and admired his family who lived in Jeddah. And for those of you who don't know, Jeddah is a city in Arabia.

Ali began regularly-scheduled flights on the _Arabian Nights_ last month from Los Angeles to Jeddah.

The reason people talked so often of that airship was because it went on the longest regularly scheduled journey ever set by man (there have been journeys to space, one which I was one, but they're not regularly scheduled). The _Aurora_'s route from Lionsgate City to Sydney (Australia) was the longest airship route for six years in a row, at 12,484 kilometers, so it was a shock when the route between Los Angeles and Jeddah launched on the _Arabian Nights_, which the journey was 13,409 kilometers.

The _Arabian Nights_ did not have many passengers but since Kenneth Ali followed laws of Islam, despite only being a half-Muslim, the _Arabian Nights_ had way less cabins than luxury ships like the _Aurora_ so people aboard the ship could pray if they were Muslim. And since Muslims could not eat pig or drink alcohol, the _Arabian Nights_ was not considered luxury. It had many Arabic comforts but of course it was not as luxurious as other ships like the _Aurora_ or the _Titania_. Generally, only a few passengers were actually Muslims. The non-Muslim passengers (the majority of the people who travel the _Arabian Nights_) were often stopping in Jeddah in order to reach other lands such as China, India, or Persia. Despite the facts that there were less cabins just for a prayer area, and no pork and alcohol served, the route was very popular and very profitable because of the tourists who used the flight. It was the only scheduled flight from the Americas to the Mideast. And you see, people would rather connect in the Mideast than any of the cities in Europa to reach China, India, or Persia.

But then a tragic incident happened. One that had changed the life of everyone on the _Arabian Nights_, as well as I, forever.

Ali was returning from Jeddah to Los Angeles. It was a six day journey. The flight path would start north from Arabia over the Mideast and West Asia, then the path would change to go west over the top of the world then fly through Canada (where I live) and shoot down the west coast of America, eventually landing in Los Angeles.

Things were going as planned until the landing in Los Angeles. Someone implanted a bomb in the airship and it destroyed the entire Los Angeles Airport. Everyone survived - well almost everyone. The only person who didn't survive was the owner and captain of the ship - Kenneth Ali. I didn't think it would affect me at all. I didn't work on the ship at all. But a telegram I received one night changed my life.

**Who do you think is telegraming Matt? And what do you think they are asking him for? I'm pretty sure you all know the answers. And by the way if you still are confused (which I'd assume if you are on the Gravity Falls archive), you can PM me for confirmation/questioning. :)**

**MULZY OUT!**


	2. Sooner or Later

**No reviews? Me sad. :(**

**Oh it's okay, no one even lurks around this section of fanfiction anymore but I'll finish this story just in case someone drops by this forum. But I'll tell you there's still lots to go. Well on with the story! :)**

I was just relaxing in my house in Lionsgate City, Canada. Just an ordinary day. Long time since I said that because I've had a lot of adventures - one involving notorious pirates, another about the _Hyperion_ and more recently, going into space. May I mention that all of them also included romantic turbulences with my fiance Kate de Vries.

Then I heard my mother hollering.

"Matt, you got a telegram."

"This is Adam Smith. You don't know me but I know you. You're Matt Cruse, pirate slayer from the _Aurora_! Let me explain why I'm telegraming you."

"Of course, but first tell me more about you." I telegramed back to Adam.

"Well I'm the watch officer for the _Arabian Nights_. You don't need to hear much more than that."

My eyes widened. The _Arabian Nights_ was the airship I told you about earlier. And it was very famous, and if you read the previous chapter, I know that you know why it's so famous. Now about the watch officer - there were several positions on an airship - cabin boy (which I was for three years on the _Aurora_), junior sailmaker, head sailmaker, rudder man, watch officer, and then of course, captain. Watch officer was the second highest position in the airship business.

"So why'd you need to telegram me?"

"Now as you know the captain of the _Arabian Nights_ died landing in Los Angeles from Jeddah and we need a new captain for the job. So would you...?"

"I'd absolutely love to!"

It's always been my dream to be captain of an airship. Granted I've been hoping it was the _Aurora_ but still it's an honor to be the captain of the longest airship flight in the world by distance.

"Great. In how many days will you start?"

"About ten. I need to make it down to Los Angeles from Lionsgate City first."

"Of course."

"Mom! Sylvia! Isabel! Come down here I've got big news!" I yelled. Sylvia and Isabel were my sisters, and I don't need to explain who "Mom" is because well she's my mom...

"I'm going to be the new captain of the airship _Arabian Nights_!"

"I can't believe it! Our big brother, captaining an airship!" Isabel said.

"I can't wait to brag about it to my friends!" Sylvia said.

"Honey this is amazing!" Mom said. "Your father would be so proud of you."

"I know he would." I said wiping a tear from my eye. My father had an incident on the _Aurora _a few years back, a few years before I started working on it.

"Are you going to tell Kate?"

"Soon enough."

I didn't know how to tell her though. I'd be leaving Lionsgate City, my family, and my fiance, for a job I've always wanted. I bet you're wondering, why can't I change the ship's origin or destination?

It costs alot of money to change a ship's origin or destination, and if it's owned independently rather than owned by a whole fleet, such as the Lunardi fleet, then it costs even more. But not that I'd change the ship's origin or destination considering it's the longest flight in the world, which is a prestigious honor (well sorta)! I bet you there are longer routes than this particular one but no one has thought of one yet so I thought it'd be best - plus how do you measure the route? You can't measure a route unless it's regularly scheduled.

I couldn't sleep at night. But it wasn't because of I was on the ground. It was because of I had to tell Kate about the job. Sooner or later Matt...sooner or later...

**Well well well, I wonder what tension will happen now. We'll find out soon enough. :)**

**Or I'll find out to be exact if no one reviews. :(**


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